A device for automatically controlling the opening and closing of a slide door of a vehicle has been known, which moves or open and close the slide door so supported as to slide on a side face of the vehicle along its front and back direction by means of motor and the like. According to the device mentioned above, a user intentionally operates an operation means installed near a door lever and a driver's seat to start the drive source, so that the slide door opens and closes through driving force of the drive source.
Also, there is a trigger means in place of the operation means, which trigger means detects that the slide door moves for a predetermined distance by a hand, starts the drive source at a chance of a movement, and exchanges the manual force to a driving force of the drive source in order to automatically open and close the slide door.
However, according to the conventional device described above, a heavy weight of such slide door and resultantly a load used to drive the heavy slide door is apt to be effected by its position and direction of opening and closing. In particular, when the vehicle considerably slants in its front and back direction along the moving track of the slide door, it is necessary to use a very large hosting force of weight of the slide door and a minus load necessary to break such hoisting force. So it has been difficult to design an automatic opening and closing control device in that sufficiently takes into safety consideration.
That is, if a load of the slide door is large and a change range of the load is wide, it is necessary to quickly handle such wide range of load change of an output power of a drive means with a sufficient allowance. However, such door drive means has small sensibility for small change of load, so it has been difficult to control a large output power in consideration of safety and preventing a pinch in the slide door.
In particular, when the start time of power drive for slide door is adapted to be automatically determined, it is necessary to have a safety counter measure in consideration of all and any situations of the vehicles, such as a door open and close direction and an open and close position, and a vehicle posture when the slide door opens and closes.
For example, when a chance of exchanging a manual force to an electric power is determined by a door traveled distance, it is very difficult to firmly recognize that manual force moves the slide door. For example, when a slide door slowly moves after the vehicle stops or stands on a moderate slope and the door opens, a drive system for the door automatically changes to an automatic drive one. Consequently, if an auto drive is now used, automatic driving force is effected. Such posture of the door widen the door load change width or range or door load itself becomes large, so that it becomes difficult to change a firm manual force for the door to an automatic force.
Specifically, because a door traveling direction is straight and along the front and back direction of the vehicle, a door weight effects largely to a control of the moving door when a vehicle stands on a slope. Consequently, it is very important to know, before opening and closing the door, the posture of the parking vehicle, that is, a slant degree of the slope, if any, on which the vehicle is parked.
This invention intends to solve such problem of the prior art. This invention thus can flexibly and safely control the door opening and closing. Another purpose of this invention is to provide a device for automatically controlling the opening and closing of the slide door for the vehicle, which effectively carries out a change of drive system from a manual one to an automatic one, correctly changes control conditions and control values according to the position of the slide door, and controls it safely and rapidly, and instantly discriminates an existence of slide door pinch.